It does taste better for not being in an aluminium keg any length of time though – its very acidic and picks up the taste very fast

@cozmic 452555 wrote:

a wise leprechaun once told me that if u want to taste a proper pint of the ‘real’ Guinness you must go drinking in Dublin

Not any more, what you drink in dublin is brewed in london these days.
Its about keeping the pipes clean and so on, around 20 years ago the barman would have four or five pints lined up on the bar,
from a tenth full to nine tenths full, there was a real difference back then, but diagio took it over and it went down hill from there.
Also the original name for guinness is porter, named after the english guy who first produced it,
and still today back my way the old fellas still ask for a ‘pinta porter’

from wiki Porter (beer) – Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Porter is a dark-coloured style of beer. The history and development of stout and porter are intertwined.^[1] The name was first used in the 18th century from its popularity with the street and river porters of London. It is generally brewed with dark malts. The name “stout” for a dark beer is believed to have come about because a strong porter may be called “Extra Porter” or “Double Porter” or “Stout Porter”. The term “Stout Porter” would later be shortened to just “Stout“. For example, Guinness Extra Stout was originally called “Extra Superior Porter” and was only given the name Extra Stout in 1840.^[2

I drink porter – I bought some Whitechapel Porter last week and am drinking it tonight, although its Asda own brand (albeit from Shepherd Neame who know their stuff when it comes to beer).

as shown in the article Sinner unearthed, Irish porter was brewed in response to competition from London. this bit was interesting, amazing what went in the beer in them days.. opium was the least worst of all of it and relatively healthy in comparison to vitriol (sulphuric acid as used in batteries…)

This act said no brewer, or dealer, or retailer of beer, shall receive, or use, or have in his possession or custody, any liquor, extract, or other material or preparation, for the purpose of darkening the colour of worts or beer, other than brown malt. He was also prohibited from using molasses, honey, liquorice, vitriol, quassia, Cocculus indicus, grains of paradise, guinea pepper, or opium, or any extract or preparation of the same, or any substitute for malt or hops, under a penalty of 200 pounds; and no chemist or vendor of drugs was permitted to sell, send, or deliver any such things to a brewer or retailer of beer under a penalty of 500 pounds.